Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what (a) algorithmic and (b) other automated decision making systems his Department uses; and for what purposes.

The Ministry of Justice is still at the early stages of assessing where the uses of algorithmic models and automated decision-making tools might help drive greater efficiency and deliver maximum value for the taxpayer, as part of the Government’s digital transformation journey.

Work done to date has primarily been around the use of Actuarial Risk Assessment Instruments (ARAIs) in HM Prisons & Probation Service to assess the risks posed by, and needs of, an offender by combining actuarial methods of prediction with structured professional judgement.

The Ministry of Justice recognises that the use of AI in the justice system raises important ethical considerations, such as bias in the data used to train algorithms and the potential for automated decision-making to perpetuate existing inequalities. Therefore, any implementation of AI in the UK Ministry of Justice must be done carefully and transparently, with appropriate safeguards in place.

Any use of automated decision making will be done in compliance with provisions in GDPR and the Data Protection Act 2018, including the right of individuals to request a new decision is made that is not based solely on automated processing.